With so much information available across the Internet, it can be difficult to discern facts from mis- and dis-information. As part of the MeL Maven Badge, library staff are asked to help patrons engage in lateral reading, the process of reading across multiple sources to verify facts. In College & Research Libraries News from Library & Information Science Source, “Rethinking CRAAP: Getting Students Thinking Like Fact-Checkers in Evaluating Web Sources,” suggests that becoming information literate is increasingly difficult because people curate information to their own interests and beliefs which thus creates a filter bubble.

The MeL eResources allow Michigan residents to access peer-reviewed journals that include well-sourced studies and transparent research methods. Political Science Complete is an eResource that can provide context to the daily news cycle as we enter the midterm elections. Examples of included publications are:

American Journal of Political Science (John Wiley & Sons, Inc.): a peer-reviewed journal of the Midwest Political Science Association which is a general review of all disciplines of political science. The publication is available full-text and published quarterly. MeL includes issues from 1973 to 2022.

Ethics and Global Politics: a peer-reviewed journal focusing on diplomacy and international relations. The publication is available full-text and published quarterly. MeL includes issues from 2008 to 2022.

Political Research Quarterly: a peer-reviewed journal published by Sage Publications which includes articles and essays about Western politics and political science. This publication is available full-text and is published quarterly. MeL includes issues from 1993 to 2022.

Another eResource from MeL that can help with lateral reading is Gale in Context: Opposing Viewpoints. This eResource has a variety of primary sources, reference books, academic journals, news and magazine articles, statistics, interactive infographics, and opinion pieces to help navigate the gray areas between polarized black and white positions. Example issues that will be helpful this fall are Voter Registration, Electronic Voting, and Gerrymandering and Redristricting.

In addition to the eResource content, MeL includes content and graphics to help library staff share information literacy basics in their communities. The Information Literacy Top 3 Basics flyer can be printed or shared electronically. There is also an information literacy content package with text and graphics for social media posts (scroll down the page to Information Literacy Theme). Promoting the MeL eResources is a great way to encourage our patrons to live information literate lives.

If you are having any issues linking to items on this page, please explore the MeL eResource Access Page. Contact [email protected] for help.